The Atlas River, which was the longest river in Zitonia, flowed through the city of Arach. Teraphon and Rubax were following the river’s southbound current.
“Zitonia is truly a beautiful continent,” said Teraphon. “This river is just one of its many marvelous gifts. Our ancestors were fortunate to find such gorgeous land. Don’t you think so?”
“Absolutely,” Rubax replied. “We couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
“Yes, but still . . . Our true homeland awaits our return. What’s our current status on the Land of Fish operation?”
Our forces have completely withdrawn from the fish territory. We’ve sustained approximately four hundred casualties and roughly ten men have either been captured or gone missing. There is still no information on the unidentified group of fighters who assisted the chordates during the battle. We’re not sure if they are apart of the Keanoan forces or if they’re a different organization entirely. What we do know is that this group consisted of manek users of every chordate and arthropod class.”
“Arthropod? Could some of our people have defected to the lands of Keanos?” Teraphon asked.
“That possibility is unlikely because of the sufficient border protection of both continents. We fear that it’s something worse than a few traitors.”
“What could be worse?”
“Spora.”
Teraphon stopped walking and stared at the rippling river water. Rubax continued with his theory.
“After speaking with some of our military leaders, we suspect that many of the spora in Keanos have come together to form their own independent organization. Details such as who their leaders are or any agendas that they have are still unknown to us.”
“It doesn’t surprise me that the chordates couldn’t keep their livestock under control. There’s no way that we’d allow a spora rebellion to develop in Zitonia.”
“Tear, if this is the case, then we will need to make immediate changes to our military plans. The Second Phylo War may have just become a three-headed monster.”
As Rubax looked into Teraphon’s eyes, he could see the resolve of a man who would sacrifice anything to reach his destination. This calm, yet cold look was a sign that Teraphon was in his most dangerous state of mind. Rubax knew that look better than anyone and felt reassured as Teraphon spoke to him with conviction in his voice.
“All who stand in our way will die, even if I have to kill them myself. We will reclaim what belongs to us.”
# # #
Group G had just completed a light training session at the amphibian base. The group leader, Nelson, called everyone over to him. He was a short middle-aged man with sand-colored hair and a slightly lighter skin tone. The glasses he wore gave him a unique look, seeing as though they weren’t common among people.
“If I call your name, go to the grand shack immediately after we break. Those people are Sap, Zeylan, Thacris, Rolar, Mory, Cypris, and Selene.”
After Nelson dismissed the group, the seven selected members walked to the grand shack together. Mory tried his best to figure out what was happening, but couldn’t find an answer. The only clue that he saw was that they were all twenty-two years old or younger.
When they arrived at the grand shack, they were absorbed into a crowd of about a hundred young Sporadical members. Mory looked around so he could assess the situation, but didn’t notice anything unusual. The people there acted normally and appeared to be just as clueless as he was. He kept his eyes moving until he spotted Sylo not too far away on his right. The clothes she wore were much nicer than the ones from before. If it wasn’t for her signature braids, he might have mistaken her for someone else.
In a short time, Sannis stepped out of the shack along with Rubi and Gryphin–the man who was in charge of the amphibian base. Someone in the crowd started clapping their hands which ignited a thunderous round of applause and cheers from the others. Sannis smiled as he raised his hand to get the group to quiet down.
“Cut it out, guys. What I have to say is very important, so listen closely.”
The humorous praise settled down and the group was ready to listen. Sannis began by thanking them for their hard work and dedication before getting to the main topics.
“As you all know, Sporadical will be moving to the Land of Reptiles in three days. I’m sure many of you are wondering why we are venturing westward if we must go east to sail across the Ganchian Ocean. That is because we will sail across the western seas to reach Zitonia.”
The crowd was stunned. Comments and questions shot out from all over.
“- We’re sailing across the Wicked Waters?”
“-This guy is nuts!”
“-How can we get there by going that way?”
“-We’ll fall off the edge of the earth!”
Even Mory was shocked. Everyone knew that the Wicked Waters of the West led to the end of the earth, and no ship that has sailed that way has ever returned. The waters were rough too, and the storms above it were nasty. Mory wondered how they could possibly get to Zitonia by going this way. Sannis spoke loudly and regained control of his audience.
“There are two reasons why you should all cast your doubts and fears aside. Reason number one is because the planet that we live on is a sphere. It’s a ball just like the ones you used to play when you were little.”
The skeptics voiced their feelings of disbelief. The idea that they were living on a big ball seemed ludicrous to them.
“Now, now, just hear me out. Some of our brave members from the reptile base have already made the journey, and they’ve sent us word that they are currently in the Myriapod Domain. This is proof that if you traveled west, not only could you reach Zitonia, but you could also return to the point at which your journey began.”
Even after hearing the testimony from Sannis, the young folks still appeared to be mind-blown.
“The second reason why you shouldn’t be worried is because none of you will be traveling to the Land of Reptiles or sailing along the western seas. Instead, you will go to the Land of Mammals to train. Then some of you will move to Zitonia at a later time.”
Mory felt like he had just been slapped in the face. For nearly fifty days he yearned for the moment when he could face his father’s killers. All of a sudden, his plans were put on hold.
“We have selected all of you to be a part of a special team of warriors who will acquire further battle development.”
Rubi stepped up and spoke.
“In other words, you’re not ready for the big leagues yet. Y’all have much to work on and improve before we can send you to war.”
“Precisely,” said Gryphin. “Don’t think of this as some sort of punishment. Extra training will benefit you and all of Sporadical as well.”
There was a mixture of emotions around the grand shack. Frustration, relief, disappointment, and indifference were all displayed by their reactions. Mory looked at Sylo, who was already looking at him. Her face gave no hints as to how she felt about their next adventure.
“You’ll be under the direction of Rubi and Gryphin along with the mammal base leader, Barin. Members from the other lands will be joining you in the Land of Mammals. From this day forth, you will be known as ‘Team X’.”
Fantasy